A few things went some way towards explaining it for me. The daddy issues, certainly. The bit where two fans - in Miami, I think - talked about the positives they get from their guru, like self-worth, resilience and a can-do attitude.
Women have been accessing self-help for decades: of varying quality, for sure, but before seeing this I hadn't considered that it bypasses young men. I think it does - they're given stuff about responsibility, self-control and focus, but precious little about feeling vulnerable or even seeking support. These beefy bullshitters are filling a gaping hole in social education, and not for the best.
I hated agreeing with Myron Gaines on something! He said he understands women better than they understand themselves. Theroux reminded him there are ambitious women, female architects, surgeons and CEOs. Gaines agreed, saying all power to those women but they are the outliers. Most women have other priorities, he says. I think he's right: the drive to have children overrides everything in many women, and it leads them into ill-advised relationships with men like himself who seem like they might be good providers of genes and protection.
He and the others exploit hormone-addled women, viewing them as weak.
I found Harrison's mini-lecture on 'value' illuminating. The others all said the same: when they talk about the value of a human being, they're exclusively talking about value to men - and in traditionally male chauvinist terms, at that. It's worrying that this all-new, revolutionary social phenomenon is so very old.